Ex-Fangio Mercedes sells for £19.6m

A Mercedes grand prix car raced by Juan Manuel Fangio has sold for a record-breaking £19.6m

The car sold was the victor at the German and Swiss grand prix in 1954

Fangio also took pole in Germany and set the fastest lap in Switzerland

The 2.5-litre straight-eight was introduced after a capacity cap

Cockpit shows only oil pressure, engine speed and water temperature

The dominance of the W196 was impressive: it won nine of the 12 races it entered in 1954 and 55

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14 July 2013

A 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196R grand prix car has become the most valuable car ever sold at auction. The car, which Fangio drove to win the 1954 German and Swiss grand prix, sold for £19,601,500 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on Friday.

Auction house Bonhams, which conducted the sale, said the car is the most valuable motor car ever sold at auction, the most valuable formula 1 racing car ever sold and the most valuable Mercedes-Benz.

The price beat the previous record of £10,086,400 paid for a Ferrari Testa Rossa in 2011.

The car was built in reply to FIA guidelines limiting capacity to 2.5-litres and banning the use of superchargers. Mercedes missed the first two rounds of the 1954 championship, but dominated on its return in France. In the hands of Fangio, chassis 00006/54 took pole position and the chequered flag at the Nürburgring and the win and fastest lap at the following round at Bremgarten near Bern.